Christian cleric condemns Jais raid on PJ church

The front facade of the Damansara Utama Methodist Church is seen after it was raided by Jais and police, August 3, 2011. — Picture by Boo Su-Lyn

KUALA LUMPUR, Aug 4 — In an immediate reaction, Council of Churches Malaysia (CCM) secretary-general Rev Hermen Shastri hit out at Selangor’s Islamic religious authorities for “storming” a Petaling Jaya church last night on questionable grounds.


The Malaysian Insider reported earlier this morning that some 30 policemen and enforcement officers from the Selangor Islamic Religious Department (Jais) had barged unannounced and without a warrant into a multiracial dinner at the Damansara Utama Methodist Church (DUMC) here last night over an unspecified complaint.

But Shastri said he understands the raid was linked to attempts to preach to Malay Muslims about Christianity.

“Apparently there was a police report by Jais on proselytising to Malays,” he told The Malaysian Insider when contacted.

“The facts of what happened are yet unclear but the Council of Churches view with great concern this development and call on the government to take whatever action necessary to curb the power of Jais to just go into the religious places of other communities and conduct their investigations,” he added.

The vocal Christian slammed Jais for resorting to such high-handed action in conducting its investigations without first checking with the church leaders.

“This is unprecedented. Should the authorities have any concern, the courteous thing to do is to contact the church for clarification,” he said.

“Before [they] enter any place of worship, they should talk to the leader. They should not storm the church. Imagine how it would look if someone stormed a mosque,” he continued, saying Jais’ act was “totally unacceptable” when various groups were trying to build a harmonious community in line with Prime Minister Datuk Seri Najib Razak’s unifying 1 Malaysia call.

Najib (right) met with Pope Benedict XVI to establish diplomatic ties with the Vatican last month. — Reuters pic

Shastri, who is on the Cabinet’s Special Committee to Promote Harmony and Understanding Among Religious Adherents set up last year is expected to raise this issue to Putrajaya’s attention.


 He co-chairs an interfaith subcommittee aimed at resolving peaceably disputes between Muslims and non-Muslims.

A DUMC pastor, Daniel Ho had told The Malaysian Insider last night that the church had hosted a thanksgiving dinner organised by a non-governmental organisation called Harapan Komuniti that was attended by between 100 and 120 guests of all races.

“This is a dinner for people to come in the 1 Malaysia spirit,” Ho said, adding they were mainly Christian although he admitted there were “there were about 15 or so Malays.”

On its website, Harapan Komuniti describes itself as a non-profit organisation that provides disaster relief and helps single mothers, children and AIDS patients regardless of race.

Ho said the authorities did not arrest anyone, but seized the function’s programme sheets and questioned the dinner organisers and guests.

“(They came in) on the pretext of a complaint and said somebody made a complaint,” said the pastor.
He pointed out, however, that the authorities did not explain what the complaint was.

Last night’s raid in the Pakatan Rakyat (PR) state came after Malaysia sealed formal ties with the Vatican last month, seen as a high point in religious relations where Muslims are the majority.

Religious tensions heightened two years ago when the Home Ministry barred Christians from referring to their god as “Allah” in a Catholic newspaper.

In 2009, the High Court allowed the church to use the word, but the case is pending a Home Ministry appeal of the decision.

Several churches across the country fell victim to arson attempts in January last year following the ruling.
 Christians, who form 9.2 per cent of Malaysia’s 28.3 million-strong population, were further outraged when the Home Ministry seized 35,100 Malay-language bibles.

The bibles were later released ahead of the Sarawak state election in April on condition that copies in Peninsular Malaysia be marked with a cross and the words “Christian publication”.

How dare Palanivel challenge Najib!

Indian political parties only serve to add humour and colour to BN’s political setup.

COMMENT - FMT

I thought I wouldn’t have to write again about MIC and its president G Palanivel. Yet I find myself pulled towards writing yet another article.

In his address, post-announcement as minister odd-job and Prime Minister Najib Tun Razak’s dogsbody, Palanivel issued a statement.

He declared that he will pull out of Barisan Nasional (BN) if another Indian-based political party or parties are accepted into the BN. He wants MIC to be the sole representative of the Indians.

I have written before that maybe Najib is better off accepting Palanivel’s bluff and substance-less audacity.

See whether Indian votes will improve with no MIC ministers around.

If they are booted out, MIC people will do what they typically do – grovel at the feet of Umno leaders.
They will do what they actually do best, which is “cosseting and mollycoddling Umno-BN leaders”.

Najib will be garlanded with mountainous rings of poo malai (flower garlands), with Palanivel hand-feeding morsels of food to Najib and Rosmah Mansor and calling Najib, “mama” (uncle) and Rosmah as “amma” (mother).

Let us remind Palanivel that MIC isn’t the government. The MIC represents the interest of Indians who subscribed to its political agenda but it doesn’t represent ALL Indians.

Other Indians, too, have the right to be considered admission into the BN.

Najib’s inherent fear

I am not sure if one has the right over admission into BN (as KS Nallakaruppan asserted) but certainly Nallakaruppan has the right to be considered. A right is what you actually worked for or owned naturally.
One doesn’t have a right over something that’s owned by someone else. Admission into BN is owned by Umno and the senior parties.

Nallakaruppan only owns his own right to submit application. But why should Indian parties consider joining BN at all?

Perhaps they should ponder over the advantages of staying independent and being a wild card.

Najib has an inherent fear of wild cards. Palanivel knows this and that’s why he is talking big.

Staying outside allows you to make threats and demands which stand a better chance at being accommodated.

Inside BN, your demands will be subsumed by MIC’s.

Peons and thambis

In any case, look at the record. MIC only managed to win three parliamentary (four now with Hulu Selangor, which it won in a by-election last year) seats in the 2008 general election. One seat in Cameron Highlands (SK Devamany), one in Segamat (Dr S Subramaniam) and another in Tapah (M Saravanan).

Can MIC clones and wannabes succeed where MIC failed?

The People’s Progressive Party (PPP) and Indian Progressive Front (IPF) will remain at best, BN’s peons and thambis.

A strong and big MIC is only necessary when Umno is big and strong. Umno itself is struggling to regain the trust of the reasonable Malay man in the street.

It follows then when big brother Umno is not strong, the need to have one Indian party under MIC is not relevant. Even the MIC is now an irrelevant convenience.

Indian political parties only serve to add humour and colour to BN’s political setup. And they add to that humour by remaining separate and many, not swallowed under one party such as MIC.

Ruffled Nallakaruppan and Palanivel’s audacity

Palanivel’s statement has ruffled Nallakaruppan, who was once Anwar Ibrahim’s tennis partner and major domo for his other extramural activities. But Nallakaruppan is now Anwar’s nemesis.

Nallakaruppan is angered by Palanivel’s statement because Nallakaruppan says his party is pro-BN.
Most probably, other Indian-based parties such as IPF and PPP share the same frustrations and disdain at the statements of mandore Palanivel.

But there is more than catches the eye. Palanivel is in effect saying, he wants only MIC MPs to be appointed ministers.

Only a day after being appointed as minister, he is already dictating terms to the PM.
The PM has the prerogative to appoint members to the federal Cabinet. Palanivel knows this, so how do we explain his audacity to dictate?

Because he knows Najib has one character flaw – Najib has the obsession to please everyone.
So what can we make of Palanivel’s statement over what the PM is authorised to do? It only shows the PM is a poor judge of character.

He should not have chosen Palanivel as minister in the first place. And a day after the appointment, Palanivel has in effect shown his arrogance and lust for power.

He wants the PM to listen to what he says despite the fact that the MIC cannot win more seats in the next general election.

The writer is a former Umno state assemblyman and an FMT columnist.

Amanah wants to ‘pour out its heart’ to Najib

The newly-formed NGO is seeking a meeting with the prime minister to discuss the various problems facing the country.

EXCLUSIVE - FMT

SERI KEMBANGAN: Angkatan Amanah Merdeka (Amanah) will seek a meeting with Prime Minister Najib Tun Razak to “pour out its heart” to him about the state of the nation.

The group’s deputy president Abdul Kadir Sheikh Fadzir said that it would be Amanah’s first attempt at making an impact towards “rebuilding” the nation.

“We will seek an appointment with the prime minister and in a closed-door session pour out our heart to him. I’m sure he’ll be happy to hear some of our suggestions,” Kadir, the former tourism minister, told FMT in an interview at his office here yesterday.

No date has been given for the proposed meeting but Kadir said this will be the group’s first agenda after the festive months.

Amanah, with a glitzy lineup of former ministers, prominent opposition leaders and academics, is touted to be a possible influential pressure group likely to court support from the “silent majority”.

The NGO was formed and is headed by respected Umno veteran Tengku Razaleigh Hamzah in a bid to rekindle the constitutional spirit espoused by the founding fathers amid a troubled and more racially divided Malaysia.

The group had also expressed concerns over the country’s economic woes, blaming patronage politics, corruption and rampant cronyism as the main factors behind Malaysia’s losing commercial appeal.

Serious problems

Kadir, who was very critical of the Najib administration at the launch of Amanah on July 22, said the prime minister’s promised reforms have not been followed through and the implementation remains questionable.

“He has been making a lot of good statements, good announcements. But unfortunately, it has not been happening on the ground. If I were him… I would stop for a while and see if the reforms are being properly implemented.

“If he were to look into this aspect (implementation), I think he will find that he has serious problems,” he said.

Najib’s promises of reforms have come under public scrutiny as key structural changes remain elusive despite announcements of various projects meant to propel the country forward.

Kadir said that Amanah has vowed to address these concerns but the NGO gave little details on how it aims to achieve its objectives.

The fact that most of its top leaders, including Kadir and Razaleigh, are still members of Umno has prompted speculation that Amanah is set to be the third political player but Kadir denied the group wants to lead a third force.

He said Amanah was an avenue created as a result of the contracting space for dissent within Umno as well as other Barisan Nasional component parties.

“There is little space for dissent. Now if we speak up, we are seen as the bad boys,” he said.

BN’s PR slots get BBC, CNBC into trouble

UK-based FBC Media has been accused of flouting broadcasting regulations over its campaign to promote Prime Minister Najib Tun Razak and other BN leaders.

KUALA LUMPUR: British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC) has allegedly launched an investigation into programmes produced by FBC Media, the public relations company commissioned by Prime Minister Najib Tun Razak and several other Barisan Nasional leaders to prop up their political image.

FBC Media, which doubled up as a TV producer, has been accused of deceiving millions of viewers by purchasing airtime on networks such as BBC, US-based CNBC and CNN, with the aim of airing feel-good tales about Najib and the BN.

Najib administration had allegedly paid FBC Media RM57 million for a global television media campaign in 2008-2009. Another RM42 million was paid out last year for a ‘global strategic media campaign’.

BBC is believed to be the second network to launch an investigation into FBC Media’s activities.
In an e-mail to FMT yesterday, Sarawak Report editor/founder Clare Rewcastle Brown said CNBC had terminated its flagship business programme ‘World Business’ after the programme’s credibility was found to be questionable following an investigation into FBC Media.

“CNBC has axed the FBC show World Business. I think BBC will announce a similar action soon,” Clare said.

BBC and CNBC have been under tremendous pressure since Clare exposed FBC Media’s unethical practices on her blog Sarawak Report.

Earlier this week she revealed how BN politicians, including Najib, former premier Abdullah Ahmad Badawi, Sarawak Chief Minister Taib Mahmud and Sime Darby chairman Musa Hitam have been paying FBC Media millions of ringgit to buy themselves positive publicity on these networks.

According to Sarawak Report purchases of slots in this way was a ‘serious breach of broadcast laws for which broadcasters such as CNBC’s parent company NBC would ultimately be held responsible.”

The report also highlighted evidence from FBC’s previous annual reports which indicated that CNBC was getting the show for free and leaving it to FBC to raise their income and profits from “sponsorship”.

An embarrased CNBC vice-president of marketing and communications Charlotte Westgate was yesterday quoted as saying that the network was pulling back the series ‘World Business.’

Said Westgate: “In light of serious questions raised last week, CNBC immediately initiated an examination of FBC and its business practices and has withdrawn the programme ‘World Business’ indefinitely.”

Clare’s posting also noted that CNN had also aired several ‘suspect shows’ produced by FBC Media, including interviews with Najib. - FMT

‘Malays less sensitive on corruption than Chinese’

The Chinese are more concerned about corrupt practices of the nation’s leaders, says PAS deputy president Mohamad Sabu.

VIDEO INSIDE - FMT

PETALING JAYA: PAS deputy president Mohamad Sabu said many Malays do not seem to know that it is part of the Islamic teachings to have zero-tolerance for corruption.

Instead, the Chinese seem to be more sensitive and concerned about corrupt practices of the nation’s leaders.

“The second Qaliph Umar Al Khattab had a large country under his rule and when he often wore new shirts, the people would ask where he got his money from to buy them.

“That is what Islam asks of you, to be critical and check your leaders,” said Mohamad, better known as Mat Sabu, during a live interview on FMT RAW yesterday.

“But now when we mention to the Malays that Rosmah (Mansor) has a ring costing RM24 million, they are not stunned. But the Chinese are. In that sense the Chinese seem to be practising Islamic culture more than the Malays,” he said.

Mohamad said Malays need to change their mindsets.

“Even when I tell them RM28 billion was lost due to corruption in Malaysia, they don’t care or can’t comprehend but the Chinese, as taxpayers, get angry,” he said.

Mohamad also said that Umno would totally “collapse” when it comes to the urban and semi-urban seats but Pakatan Rakyat still had a long way to go with rural voters.

He touched on how the Umno-controlled mainstream media as well as the National Civics Buerau (Biro Tata Negara) have a hold on the minds of many Malays, and Pakatan needs to find a way to break that strangehold.

On the incident where he was allegedly rammed into by a police vehicle when he was on his way to take part in July 9 Bersih 2.0 rally, he said he was disappointed by accusations that he dramatised the whole episode.

“That’s very low politics. We don’t play with health. When Najib (Tun Razak) was sick, we prayed for him, when the Inspector-General of Police had a heart treatment, we prayed. Even with Ibrahim Ali, (although) I don’t like him… I called him and wished him a speedy recovery,” he said.



The incident caused a torn ligament on Mat Sabu’s right knee, and as a result he had to undergo an operation at a hospital to insert a metal screw in his knee.

Excerpt of the interview follows:

On his No 2 post in PAS
I admit I have not been able to perform much of my party duties lately. Most of the time spent recently on Bersih and recovering in the hospital. However, we will be launching a big programme after Ramadan. We will go on campaigns nationwide.

On the impending general election:
We have to work hard on dismantling Umno’s hold on the rural folk and Felda. Because they have access to the mainstream media, they promote Umno’s ideology. Umno will lose the urban seats, but rural seats… we need to find a way to break through to them. Umno creates a perception that they are the guardians of Malay rights. And it’s very hard to change this because we have no access to people in rural areas.


On the Biro Tata Negara:
They send government officers for so many training courses. They tell you, you live and have a good status in Malaysia because of Umno. We need to debunk this thinking. It’s a little bit different in Kelantan, but not in Johor, Negri Sembilan and many of the Malay rural areas… they (rural folk) still believe they need protection from Umno.

On Bersih 2.0:
NGOs have activists but not many followers, and that’s why political parties are needed to give them a boost. PAS supported it (Bersih 2.0 rally) 100%; we mobilised all our people and our spiritual leader Nik Aziz Nik Mat even said it was compulsory for all members to attend. That’s why we were successful. Our members are still waiting for Bersih 3.0 if the Election Commission is not going to act on the eight points raised by Bersih.

On PAS’ new ‘moderate’ image:
The image for me is secondary; what’s important is the substance – what we are fighting for. In Malaysia, problems of nepotism and corruption are high. Of course, this is also an Islamic issue. We want to abolish or reduce corruption, so we have to fight together with all the races and all NGOs, DAP, PKR, are all very interested in this issue. We’re not just being ‘moderate’ but we are doing things in accordance with Islam too.
On PAS’ and his plans for the general election:

We are discussing the numbers (of seats) from time to time. Now they are asking, who is the leader, what is happening to the Malays and Muslims? If we contest more seats, at least we can win the Malays back from Umno. Will I contest?… I hope so, if given a chance. I can contest in a majority non-Malay area, either in Penang or Selangor, not a problem.

On the July 9 accident:
I have proof. I was on the way to Masjid Negara riding pillion on a motorcycle. A Pajero tried to cut into our path but the rider of the bike made a U-turn; at that time a Proton Waja knocked into my right leg on the knee. Several men came and one of them said, ‘cuff him’. I said ‘no need, I cannot even walk’. They then pushed me into the Pajero and sent me to the Jinjang lock-up. It was a painful experience… Later when I went for an operation, doctors put a 2.5 metal screw into my knee. I suffered for more than two weeks confined in a wheelchair. Now I’m on crutches. I have witnesses. I don’t know why the police… tried to bluff by saying that I was knocked by a Pajero when it was a Waja. Our lawyer sent a letter three days demanding an apology within 24 hours from the police, but till now they haven’t. My lawyers will bring them to court.

On Tengku Razaleigh as the Opposition Leader:
The party has not discussed it. I think Umno is worried because Amanah is becoming another faction within BN. It will split the Umno votes, not the Malay votes. We will actually benefit from it. We are not in competition with Amanah. We bless them actually.

Jais, cops raid church over multi-racial dinner

PETALING JAYA, Aug 4 — The police and Selangor religious authorities raided a multi-racial dinner at the Damansara Utama Methodist Church (DUMC) here last night over an unspecified complaint.

DUMC senior pastor Dr Daniel Ho said about 30 police officers and enforcement officers from the Selangor Islamic Religious Department (Jais) entered the church without a warrant at 10pm.

The front of DUMC which was raided by the police and Jais officers on August 3, 2011. — Picture by Boo Su-Lyn

Ho explained that an NGO called Harapan Komuniti had organised an annual thanksgiving dinner at the church, which saw an attendance of between 100 and 120 guests of all races.

 

“This is a dinner for people to come in the 1 Malaysia spirit,” Ho told The Malaysian Insider late last night.

“They were mainly Christians... there were about 15 or so Malays,” he said.
On its website, Harapan Komuniti describes itself as a non-profit organisation that provides disaster relief and helps single mothers, children and AIDS patients regardless of race.

Ho said the authorities did not arrest anyone, but seized the function’s programme sheets and questioned the dinner organisers and guests.

“(They came in) on the pretext of a complaint and said somebody made a complaint,” said the pastor.
He pointed out, however, that the authorities did not explain what the complaint was.

Last night’s raid in the Pakatan Rakyat (PR) state came after Malaysia sealed formal ties with the Vatican last month, seen as a high point in religious relations where Muslims are the majority.

Religious tensions heightened two years ago when the Home Ministry barred Christians from referring to their god as “Allah” in a Catholic newspaper.

In 2009, the High Court allowed the church to use the word, but the case is pending a Home Ministry appeal of the decision.

Several churches across the country were fire-bombed in January last year following the ruling.

Christians, who form 9.2 per cent of Malaysia’s 28.3 million-strong population, were further outraged when the Home Ministry seized 35,100 Malay-language bibles.

The bibles were later released ahead of the Sarawak state election in April on condition that copies in Peninsular Malaysia be marked with a cross and the words “Christian publication”.

Voters' lobby group ticks off 'ignorant' Najib

(Malaysiakini) A group advocating voting rights of Malaysians living abroad has expressed disappointment with the premier's ignorance of the issue of overseas voting.

It has also urged Najib Abdul Razak to take immediate action to rectify the disenfranchisement of overseas voters.

The lobby group, MyOverseasVote, claimed that Najib's answer to a question during the 5th Annual Malaysian Student Leaders Summit last Sunday proves that he is not clued-in about the rights of voters living abroad.

Najib had said that allowing Malaysians students and workers overseas to vote is a constitutional issue that will require constitutional amendments.

In a statement issued last night, however, MyOverseasVote clarified that Article 119 of the federal constitution states that every citizen who has attained the age of 21 has the right to vote, either as a resident in a constituency or as an 'absent voter'.

The constitution does not define which voters fall into the category of 'absent voter'. This is instead defined by the Elections (Registration of Voters) Regulations 2002.

This regulation made by the Election Commission (EC) and approved by the government allows only three categories of Malaysian citizens to register as absent voters:

• those serving members of a Malaysian, Commonwealth or foreign military and their spouses;

• government servants serving outside Peninsular Malaysia or Sabah or Sarawak and their spouses; and

• full-time students studying outside Peninsular Malaysia or Sabah or Sarawak and their spouses.

MyOverseasVote is of the view that this regulation has discriminated against citizens on the grounds of occupation and employment.

"The regulation excludes nearly a million Malaysians stationed overseas who work in the private sector or who are retired,” said the group.

“The prime minister should explain why it is that a Malaysian who is serving with a foreign military is entitled to vote as an absent voter, (while) a Malaysian who works overseas for a Malaysian or multinational company is deprived of the right to vote.”

The group urged Najib, who had claimed that the government is committed to and will undertake electoral reforms, to do away with the EC regulation which is contrary to the constitution.

Another anomaly in overseas voting rights, said the group, is the disenfranchisement of full-time students from Sabah or Sarawak who are studying in the peninsula, and vice versa, even though the Elections (Registration of Voters) Regulations 2002 categorises them as 'absent voters'.

"We are unaware of any (such) student who has successfully registered as an absent voter."

Lapses of diplomatic missions

MyOverseasVote also raised the failure of Malaysian foreign missions to register overseas students as 'absent voters'.

According to the group, Foreign Affairs Minister Anifah Aman, at a meeting with concerned citizens in Melbourne on Monday, had said he agreed that “every Malaysian overseas has the right to vote” but added that “it is not easy to implement”.

He was also asked about the progress of appointing assistant EC registrars at Malaysian diplomatic missions to facilitate the registration process as mentioned by EC chairperson Abdul Aziz Yusof in January 2011.

Anifah (right) answered: "Again, that may be his statement but the system has not been set up yet, so we have to wait for the EC to brief us on how the overseas voting works. Believe me, we are working on it but these things take time.”

On the issue of improving the postal voting system by learning from other countries, the group claimed that Anifah's reply was: "Not everything that works overseas can work in Malaysia. We cannot compare mature democracies to our situation in Malaysia. For those who want to vote, we must put in the effort to allow people to vote.

“I'll give you an example of an American missionary in Sabah who had to fly to Kuala Lumpur to vote. Perhaps a solution we can consider is to set up voting centres at the consulates for people to vote, but we can't set one up in remote areas.”

During the session, Anifah was handed a memorandum on behalf of NGO Saya Anak Bangsa Malaysia and MyOverseasVote, as well as 24 'frequently asked questions' (FAQ) about voter registration at Malaysian missions and procedures surrounding postal voting.

The FAQ was compiled after MyOverseasVote found that Malaysian missions are not adequately briefed on, or equipped to handle, voter registration.

"We would like to remind the minister that a system already exists to enable students, civil servants and the armed forces who are overseas to vote with a postal vote," MyOverseasVote said.

"It seems clear to us that the problem with overseas voting is not the lack of any provision in the constitution or in any laws passed by Parliament, but rather the nonsensical and discriminatory regulations that have been drawn up by the EC and the government, coupled with the government's failure even to comply with its own existing regulations."

The group told Najib to act immediately to demonstrate that he abides by the constitution and that he walks the talk.

Malaysia's 8TV pulls 'racist' Ramadan adverts

A Malaysian TV channel has withdrawn a series of public-service messages about the Muslim holy month of Ramadan, after viewers complained they were racist.

One of the adverts showed an ethnic Chinese girl acting in a rude manner towards Muslims, followed by a message saying: "Do not be loud or obnoxious."

In another of the adverts the girl is wearing a vest-top and is told: "Do not wear tight and revealing clothes."

The station, 8TV, apologised for any "inconvenience or uneasiness" caused.

"It is with much regret that there were misinterpretations in the PSA [public service announcement] that were meant to serve only as a message of respect for the Ramadan month," the channel said in a message on its Facebook page.

"The message was not meant to offend anyone, race or creed in any way. This is an honest mistake involving a very small amount of humour that was misinterpreted which led to concerns."

The station, which aims largely at Malaysia's sizeable Chinese minority, pulled the messages from its schedules and also moved quickly to delete them from video-sharing websites.

Its Facebook page was inundated with critical messages.

One web user, Jules Yap, said the channel had shown "disgusting, arrogant behaviour".

"Can't believe how arrogant the higher-ups in 8TV are, coming out with a defensive, insincere 'apology' which at the same time blames the viewers for misinterpreting the offensive PSA ads, when the ads are clearly in poor taste," he said.

Boon Hun said: "Gosh, you keep using the word misinterpretations, like it's our fault!"
Ethnic Chinese make up about one quarter of Malaysia's population.

They often complain of being discriminated against by the country's laws, which give ethnic Malays preferential treatment.

Entri khas - ROSMOH dan BIRKIN [koleksi 15 gambar]

Birkin bag - wiki

The Birkin bag is a handmade purse by Hermès and named after actress and singer Jane Birkin. The bag is a symbol of wealth due to its high price and elusiveness to the public.

Its prices range from $9,000 to $150,000. (maknanya lebih kurang RM27,000 hingga RM450,000. ya, hampir setengah juta untuk sebuah beg tangan)

Costs escalate according to the type of materials. The bags are distributed to Hermès boutiques on unpredictable schedules and in limited quantities, creating scarcity and, intended or unintended, exclusivity.

History

In 1981, Hermès chief executive Jean-Louis Dumas was seated next to Jane Birkin on a flight from Paris to London. She had just placed her straw bag in the overhead compartment of her seat, but the contents fell to the ground, leaving her to scramble to replace the contents. Birkin explained to Dumas that it had been difficult to find a leather weekend bag she liked. In 1984, he created a black supple leather bag for her, based on an 1892 design. She used the bag for herself then later changed her mind. Nevertheless, the bag has since become an icon.

Design

Birkin bags are sold in a range of sizes. Each one may be made to order with different customer-chosen hides, color, and hardware fixtures. There are other individual options, such as diamond-encrusting.

• The bag also has a variety of hides such as calf leather, ostrich, crocodile, and lizard. One of the most expensive is saltwater crocodile skin (CONTOH). Bags with smaller scales cost more than those with larger scales. The bag is lined with goat-skin. The color of the interior matches the exterior. Prices for the Birkin bag depend on the color, hardware fixtures, and skin.

• Sizes are 25, 30, 35, and 40 centimeters. The 50- and 55-centimeter bags are meant for travelling. It also comes in a variety of colors such as pink, red, brown, baby blue, navy blue, orange, white, black, and golden tan. (dan lain lain - limited edition)

• The bag has a lock and keys. The keys are enclosed in a leather lanyard known as a clochette, carried by looping through a handle. The bag is locked by closing the top flaps over buckle loops, wrapping the buckle straps, or closing the lock on the front hardware. Locks and keys are number-coded. Earlier locks only bore one number on the bottom of the lock. In more recent years, Hermès has added a second number under the Hermes stamp of the lock. These numbers for locks can be the same for hundreds of locks as they are batch numbers in which the locks were made.

• The metallic hardware (the lock, keys, buckle hardware, and base studs) are plated with gold or palladium to prevent tarnishing. Hardware is updated regularly to maintain the top quality available in the industry at time of production. The metal lock may be covered with leather as a custom option. Diamonds are another custom addition.

• Hermès offers a "spa treatment" – a reconditioning for overly used bags.

• A "Shooting Star" Birkin has a stamp shaped like a shooting star adjacent to the "Hermès, Paris Made in France" stamp; this is in gold or silver to match the hardware and embossing. Rarely, the stamp is blind or colorless, if the bag is made of one or two leathers on which Hermes does not use metallic stamping. Birkins or other Hermès bags can sometimes be made by independent craftsmen for "personal use" once a year. Every bag bears the stamp of the craftsperson who made the bag. These identifications vary widely but are not different for every bag made. More than one craftsman's stamp on a bag is not uncommon because the stamp is not a serial reference. Fonts and stamping orders may vary depending on the craftsman.

Craftsmanship

The bags are handmade in France by expert artisans. The company's signature saddle stitching, developed in the 1800s, is another distinctive feature. Each bag is hand-sewn, buffed, painted, and polished, taking several days to finish. An average bag is created in 48 hours. Leathers are obtained from different tanners in France, resulting in varying smells and textures. Because of the individual craftsmanship, other details of the bags may not all match. The company justifies the cost of the Birkin bag, compared to other bags, based on the meticulous craftsmanship and scarcity.

 

* * * * * * *

betul, isu ni dah lama. chegubard pun pernah cerita hal ni dulu di SINI. bukannya gua ketinggalan, tapi gua ambil masa agak lama untuk post entri ni sebab gua sibuk mencari gambar gambar bukti lain yang mengaitkan si rosmoh dengan koleksi birkin dia. 

hah puas hati? bab harga tu gua no komen. kalau rajin pergi la cari sendiri dekat mana mana. dekat eBay pun ada. tapi takkan dia shopping dekat eBay ye dak? keh keh keh

sumber : ebay

contoh beg birkin

Store's food mistake upsets Muslim mum

SUPERMARKET Morrisons has apologised after a Muslim family bought a tuna salad which contained ham.
The family from Carlton bought two pasta salads which were labelled as tuna salads from Morrisons in Netherfield last month.

But when they got home they discovered it was a ham salad.

It is against the family's religion to eat meat from a pig. The mum-of-two in the family, who did not want to be identified, complained to Morrisons about the mis-labelled food.

She said: "My children and I have never eaten ham before so we didn't know what it looked like. But we realised straight away that it was not tuna in the salad and my children were very distraught."

She also said she was unhappy with the response she received from Morrisons.

She said: "I received a £15 gift voucher as an apology but this is not enough. Morrisons need to realise the damage they have done. If food is mis-labelled, people could have allergic reactions when picking produce they think is safe to eat."

A spokesperson for Morissons said: "We are aware our customers may wish to avoid certain foods for religious reasons and we take correct labelling very seriously. We were very sorry to learn that this customer was sold an incorrectly labelled product and have offered our sincerest apologies.

"We will ensure extra vigilance with regard to the correct labelling of these products.''

Too many chiefs, too few Indians?

(Malaysiakini) When Prime Minister Najib Abdul Razak promoted the MIC president, G Palanivel, to become a full minister, no one was shocked. It was typical of Najib's arrogance and lack of leadership to put politics over policies, material goods over meritocracy, enticement over engagement.

Whilst Palanivel's promotion served to highlight Najib's hubris, lack of focus and his deepening moral decline, it also showed his desperation to win the next general election. If policies won't work, then political manoeuvring will.

Isn't our Prime Minister's Department staffed with ministers who have come in through the back door or whom many consider bootlickers? Many will be familiar with the expression Too many chiefs and not enough Indians.

More importantly, the promotion does not make sense at a time when the government tells us to adopt austerity measures and that it, too, might go bankrupt.

Perhaps, Samy Vellu (left) could be stripped of his pseudo ministerial status, which must cost the taxpayer several millions, and redirect this allocation to Palanivel.

What is so extraordinary about Samy Vellu, our 'special envoy' who is given a ministerial rank? What does he know? Why is he paid over RM27,000 monthly and given “conveniences and other allowances” as well as a staff of six and an office in Plaza Sentral, Kuala Lumpur?

Why will Najib not take stock of the situation? His lack of scruples meant he resorted to his “deal or no deal”, RM5 million election gimmick, as in Sibu - his “You help me, I help you” moment of infamy.

When will Najib understand that the public purse does not belong to him? When will this product of a respected English public school and a graduate of an equally prestigious university realise that blackmail and bribery would not be condoned by his alma maters?

At the 65th MIC general assembly, Palanivel had urged Najib to reward “hardworking” Indians from the estates, and road and railway workers whose toil had helped build Malaysia. He wanted Najib to increase the budget allocation and form a special unit to help the Indian community.

He said, “The Indian community is waiting for your good moves, sir, good announcements and good plans. If you can fulfill all the requirements that I have put forward... you can rest assured that the Indian votes will automatically return to Barisan Nasional.”

Najib's response was: “There must be an understanding. Can you all deliver for Barisan Nasional? You can deliver and we will deliver”.

There are more questions raised by both Palanivel's and Najib's statements.

The most important being: What has BN and MIC done for the Indian community in the 54 years since independence?

Come every election, the Indians will be told that BN/MIC are the only parties for them. Then we hear that the MIC representative is hardly seen until the next election.

Facing a multitude of problems

The Indians face a multitude of problems such as the following: Not being issued with birth certificates or identity cards. Terrible conditions in Tamil schools. Tamil schools which are not legally sited. A lack of proper burial sites or graveyards. Demolition of temples. Temples without land titles. High suicide rates. High dropout rates in school. High crime rates and gangsterism. High levels of domestic violence in families. High levels of poverty.

These are not new problems. They have been around since independence but what have the elected MIC politicians done about resolving them? How strong is their commitment?

In the 2010 census, Indians made up 7 percent of the 28 million population. The Ninth Malaysian Plan stated that Indians controlled 1.2 percent of the corporate wealth. Contrast this decline with TimeAsia's report of 1.5 percent in 2000 with corresponding figures for the Malays (19.4 percent) and Chinese (38.5 percent).

So is looking after 2 million Indians very difficult? Or are there more Indians than the official statistics claim? Moreover, are the allegations about elected MIC politicians lining their own coffers and ignoring the electorate to be believed?

So how does Palanivel (right in photo) attempt to woo the Indians? He is beginning to sound like Najib, who told an audience in Sepang after his return from a trip to the Vatican, ostensibly to improve ties between the Christians and Muslims in Malaysia, that he would only respect Christians if the Christians would respect him.

Both Palanivel and Najib have to realise that respect is earned, just as people's votes, have to be earned.

If the Indian vote is increasingly difficult for BN to command then perhaps it is the politicians who ought to realise that race can never be used to win votes.

Palanivel is wrong to say that the Indian votes “will automatically return to Barisan Nasional”. MIC does not represent all Indians.

For almost a month, Dr D Jeyakumar of the Parti Sosialis Malaysia has been detained without charge. Were there protests from MIC about this illegal detention? Palanivel may have demanded the release of the PSM 6, but he was only vocal in the days before they were freed.

If Palanivel thinks MIC is the champion of the Indians, he might want to do a lot of soul searching and footwork.

In Sungei Siput, some members of the community allege that during Samy Vellu's reign, the ex-MIC leader did very little to alleviate the suffering of the poor Indians in the community.

'Poverty did not exist in Sungei Siput'

When it came to election time, when freebies and food were in abundance at MIC functions, it was alleged that the ex-MIC leader would proudly boast that poverty did not exist in Sungei Siput.

He obviously did not do his homework or go on a walkabout. Families living on RM300 a month and living in dilapidated shacks were common. It was also alleged that anyone who dared contradict Samy Vellu with regard to poverty, would receive a visit from his thugs.

During the recent furore with the PSD scholarships, one poor Indian teenager in the area who scored 8 As was refused a scholarship to do medicine. She decided to ask an MIC politician for assistance to secure funds. He in turn, allegedly asked her, “What's in it for me?”

If Palanivel thinks the MIC can deliver the votes, he might want to reconsider his moves.

Actions always speak louder than words. But this advice should perhaps be heeded by Najib more than anyone else, for as we enter the fasting month of Ramadan, Najib might want to reflect on his deeds and his conduct.

How can he consider himself to be a true and pious Muslim when corruption is the order of the day in Umno/BN?
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MARIAM MOKHTAR is a non-conformist traditionalist from Perak, a bucket chemist and an armchair eco-warrior. In 'real-speak', this translates into that she comes from Ipoh, values change but respects culture, is a petroleum chemist and also an environmental pollution-control scientist.

Anwar confirms met Ku Li, denies bid to coax defection

KUALA LUMPUR, Aug 3 — Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim admitted meeting Tengku Razaleigh Hamzah “before” and “after” his failed September 16, 2008 takeover bid, but he denied enticing the Kelantan prince to defect to Pakatan Rakyat (PR).

The PR de facto leader refuted today a Wikileaks’ leaked US diplomatic cable which said that he (Anwar) had continued to claim Putrajaya through crossovers by seeking Tengku Razaleigh’s support.

Anwar told The Malaysian Insider that his meeting with the Gua Musang MP was no secret, and that it was merely to discuss “political issues.”

“There was a meeting, it is public knowledge, I met him (Tengku Razaleigh) before and after September 16.

“(But) we met because he wanted to be informed about issues, political issues,” Anwar (picture) said, and repeatedly stressed that there was no discussion about any form of crossovers.

“No, not like that. Not in that form,” Anwar added.

The leaked cable said that Anwar’s efforts were “inconclusive” as the Kelantan prince was said to be eyeing the prime minister’s spot personally.

In the cable, US ambassador James R. Keith told his government that the opposition leader had only altered his tone but not his goal nor his tactics, and had even stayed in contact with then prime minister Tun Abdullah Ahmad Badawi through Khairy Jamaluddin before Datuk Seri Najib Razak took over in 2009.

PKR party leaders Chua Tian Chang (Tian Chua) and R. Sivarasa purportedly confirmed this when met by “polcouns”, or political counsellors, separately in November 3 and 5, believed to be in 2008, but added that their leader had relaxed his pace to a “lower key approach” after his failed September 16 plan.

But Anwar also denied today that he contacted Abdullah through Khairy.

“No, what the report (leaked cable) says is not right. There is no basis,” he told The Malaysian Insider.
The Rembau MP himself has refuted the leaked cable’s report, and said that he has “never met Anwar” secure the opposition’s support for Abdullah’s reform legacy before the prime minister stepped down from office in 2009.

The leaked US cable also said that Anwar had lost significant political momentum after the debacle but PKR planned to recoup its losses by finding ways to weaken the new administration, to be helmed by Najib in April 2009, with scandals like the murder of Mongolian model Altantuya Shaariibuu and the Eurocopter aircraft purchase.

US ambassador Keith added that without sufficient ethnic Malay support, Anwar had banked his hopes on attracting Umno crossovers through approaching “losers” in the transition between Abdullah and Najib, namely Tengku Razaleigh or “Ku Li”, who was at the time the sole challenger to Najib’s impending Umno presidency.

Ku Li, however, insisted on taking on the prime minister’s post and, upon weighing in the odds, talks with the senior Umno leader produced no result, the ambassador said in the cable. The ambassador concluded that Anwar’s ability to attract the “losers” from the Abdullah-Najib transition remains “theoretical”.

In Anwar’s September 16 takeover plan, it was boasted that a major exodus involving the crossovers of over 30 Barisan Nasional (BN) MPs would see Pakatan Rakyat (PR) wrest federal power.

The rumour mill was set spinning again recently over PR’s engagement with Ku Li, this time with claims that the Gua Musang MP would replace Anwar as opposition leader should the latter’s sodomy charges stick.

In India, a Bribe-busting Bill

In India, where corruption costs the public and private sectors millions of dollars a year, demands for petty bribes are frequently signaled in code: “Take care of me” or, for a two-note handout, “Make Gandhi smile twice.” Illegal demands by police and bureaucrats are “deeply ingrained in the culture,” says anticorruption crusader Vijay Anand, and are “taken as the norm.”

But 5th Pillar, Anand’s grassroots citizens group, is trying to create a new norm—by printing and passing out notes worth nothing at all (above). Since 2007, 5th Pillar has distributed 1.3 million zero-rupee bills. People give them as a polite protest to officials trying to squeeze extra payment for routine services like issuing driver’s licenses or loans. The effect has been to shame or scare some public servants—who can go to jail if they’re caught—into honest behavior. The zero-rupee note, says anticorruption researcher Fumiko Nagano, emboldens people to assert their rights, because when they’re backed up by 5th Pillar, “they realize they are not alone.”

Nor is India. Zero-currency notes are spreading to help fight corruption in Mexico and Nepal as well—an affirmation of nonviolent resistance that would surely have made Gandhi smile for real. —Hannah Bloch

{jcomments on}

Posted by National Geographic Staff

Bersih 2.0 – a BN screw up

PSM's Dr Michael D Jeyakumar fails to understand why the government turned the issue into a political fiasco.

BUTTERWORTH: Parti Sosialis Malaysia (PSM) leader Dr Michael D Jeyakumar today slammed the federal government for blatant mismanagement of the Bersih 2.0 rally.

The Sungai Siput MP said he could not understand why the Umno-led Putrajaya administration turned the issue into a political fiasco.

He called on Attorney-General Abdul Gani Patail to drop the charges against the 30 PSM leaders and members, including him, for allegedly being in possession of 600 photocopies of Bersih pamphlets and subversive documents.

Jeyakumar, who was charged at the Sessions Court here today, said the government’s mismanagement severely damaged the country’s reputation both internationally and domestically.

“More people have got upset with the government’s wrong handling of the Bersih rally. We should not have been detained or charged either. The charges should be dropped,” he told reporters.

Jeyakumar and 29 others from PSM face charges under the Societies Act pertaining to the Bersih 2.0 pamphlets and the Internal Security Act for the subversive documents.

Of them, 24 were charged last month.

The six charged today were released last Friday, after being held for 28 days without trial under the draconian Emergency Ordinance 1969.

Constructive dialogues

Jeyakumar said the government could have engaged Bersih 2.0 in constructive dialogues to find amicable solutions to the issues pertaining to free and fair elections.


He added that even Barisan Nasional leaders would want a free and fair electoral process.

If only the BN government had moved together with Bersih 2.0 to conduct free and fair elections, he believes that Pakatan Rakyat would have been forced to take the backseat.

He insisted that the government should have allowed PSM to carry out its nationwide “Udahlah Bersaralah” political campaign.

“PSM would not have influenced many people with its campaign. But the police crackdown on us has given PSM positive publicity and influenced people to look into our campaign as well,” he said.

Jeyakumar said he could not comprehend the government’s hard line stand on Bersih 2.0 when it should have learnt from the mishandling of demonstrations such as the Bersih 1.0 and Hindraf rallies in 2007.
“Only the government can answer this,” he said. - FMT

‘PM clueless on overseas voting processes’

MOV says that the Election Regulations 2002 prevent nearly one million Malaysians overseas from voting.

PETALING JAYA: Prime Minister Najib Tun Razak has been criticised by an overseas movement for his apparent ignorance over voter and voting registration processes for Malaysians abroad.

MyOverseasVote (MOV) said that Najib was asked during the 5th Annual Malaysian Student Leaders Summit in Kuala Lumpur last Sunday as to how Malaysians studying and working abroad could cast their votes.

He reportedly answered that he would look into the practicalities of allowing overseas voting and the necessity of amending the Federal Constitution to allow for this. He also assured the summit that his administration is committed to and will undertake electoral reform.

In a statement today, MOV expressed disappointment that Najib appeared to be in the dark about overseas voting and referred to Article 119 of the constitution.

The article provides that every Malaysian citizen has the right to vote so long as he is at least 21 years old and registered either as a voter resident in a constituency or as an “Absent Voter”.

MOV also pointed out that pursuant to the Elections (Postal Voting) Regulations 2003, all absent voters are entitled to receive postal ballots when an election is called.

“Unfortunately the regulations governing the registration of absent voters currently discriminate between citizens on the grounds of their occupation and employment,” MOV said.

The Elections (Registration of Voters) Regulations 2002 allowed only three categories of Malaysian citizens to register as absent voters.

The three are:

• serving members of a Malaysian, Commonwealth or foreign military and their spouses,

• civil servants serving outside Peninsular or East Malaysia and their spouses, and

• full-time students studying outside Peninsular or East Malaysia and their spouses.

“It thereby excludes nearly a million Malaysians stationed overseas who work in the private sector or who are retired,” MOV stated.

“The prime minister should explain why a Malaysian serving with a foreign military is entitled to vote as an absent voter but not a Malaysian who works overseas for a Malaysian or multinational company.”

MOV further referred to its recent survey findings that Malaysian embassies, high commissions and consulates worldwide are regularly turning away students on spurious and false grounds when they try to register to vote.

Passing the buck

Meanwhile Foreign Affairs Minister Anifah Aman met with Malaysians in Melbourne on Monday and agreed that “every Malaysian overseas has the right to” vote but added  that “it’s not easy to implement”.
MOV however reminded Anifah that a system already exists to enable students, civil servants and the armed forces who are overseas to vote with a postal vote.

When asked about the progress of appointing assistant registrars at overseas missions as suggested by the Election Commission (EC) in January, Anifah had said that the EC had to brief his ministry first.

“Believe me, we are working on it but these things take time,” he reportedly said. “And not everything that works overseas can work in Malaysia. We cannot compare mature democracies to our situation here.”

“For those who want to vote, we must put in the effort to allow people to vote. Perhaps a solution we can consider is to set up voting centres at the consulates for people to vote, but we can’t set one up in remote areas”.

But an unconvinced MOV concluded, “The problem with overseas voting lay solely in the nonsensical and discriminatory regulations that have been drawn up by the EC and the government, coupled with the latter’s failure even to comply with its ow existing regulations”.

The Bumiputera race torpedoed the Putrajaya race

Many sceptics, especially from Umno, pooh-poohed Anwar’s ’16 September’ announcement. Many, even from the opposition, were puzzled as to why Anwar made such as announcement even if it were true. Would it not have been better to keep silent and make a surprise move instead of tipping off the other side and allow them to block the move?
NO HOLDS BARRED

Raja Petra Kamarudin

I have written many things in the past, some of which have been regarded as mere speculation because of the absence of tangible evidence. As usual, all we need to do is to wait for the evidence to surface by itself. And with the latest Wikileaks revelation published today, what was said back then begins to make sense today.

Regarding Anwar Ibrahim’s ‘failure’ to make good his ‘16 September’ promise, I emphasised that he could not get enough Bumiputera or Malay Members of Parliament to cross over.
This would of course mean MPs from Umno.

Note: In West Malaysia, the Umno MPs would be Malay-Muslims while in East Malaysia, they would not necessary be Malay-Muslims because non-Muslim ‘natives’ are also regarded as Bumiputeras over there.
Many sceptics, especially from Umno, pooh-poohed Anwar’s ’16 September’ announcement. Many, even from the opposition, were puzzled as to why Anwar made such as announcement even if it were true. Would it not have been better to keep silent and make a surprise move instead of tipping off the other side and allow them to block the move?

They thought that Anwar was bluffing. It was a sort of poker play to get the other side to panic. Then, if it didn't happen, he could always blame the other side for blocking the move. At worse they will say Anwar made a mistake by announcing it too prematurely, thereby allowing the other side to block the move. 
The sceptics thought he was bluffing and the believers thought he was not bluffing but erred by announcing it too early.

Actually, Anwar did have the numbers -- the 30 Barisan Nasional MPs he needed to form the federal government. But there was a problem in getting them to make the first move. Everyone wanted the others to make the first move and if it is proven Anwar had the numbers, and it appeared like the federal government was going to fall, then they would follow.

In short, no one wanted to be the first in case Anwar fell short of the 30 he promised and needed. If they made the first move and then Anwar failed, they would be left in the open to get killed.

It is like in an army charging the enemy through an open field. When you shout “charge!” and only a few respond you will get massacred. Everyone has to charge at the same time. So you play safe and watch who charges first. Only when everyone charges do you join the charge from the safety of the rear.

So those Barisan MPs from East Malaysia were waiting to see who from West Malaysia were going to jump and the Barisan MPs from West Malaysia were waiting to see who from East Malaysia were going to jump.
In the end no one jumped because all were waiting for the others to jump first. They should have done it like in the movie ‘Titanic’ when Leonardo DiCaprio and Kate Winslet made their deal -- ‘you jump, I jump’.
In the end both did not jump anyway right until the time the ship sank.

If only Anwar could have arranged for all 30 to jump at the same time rather than ‘you jump first and I will follow’ then 16 September would have happened. No one wanted to be the first. All wanted to be in the ‘I will follow once enough people jump’ group.

That was the first obstacle Anwar faced.

The second obstacle was the racial composition because once the 30 Barisan MPs jumped, and added to the 82 already in Pakatan, the racial composition would be in favour of non-Malays or non-Muslims. In other words, the non-Malays-non-Muslims would outnumber the Malays-Muslims.

This was acceptable to PAS and DAP. Yes, even PAS had no problems if the new Pakatan federal government was a non-Malay-non-Muslim majority government and the Malays-Muslims were reduced to a minority. It was Anwar who feared that this may raise allegations that the Malays-Muslims have ‘lost’ political power to the non-Malays-non-Muslims.

In short, Anwar had cold feet. He wanted to make sure that the Malays-Muslims in the new government would remain the majority and not be reduced to a minority. Unless these 30 were Umno Malay-Muslim MPs, this was impossible.

So Anwar needed Tengku Razaleigh Hamzah (Ku Li) to join the gang so that more Umno Malay-Muslims would cross over. Then the new Pakatan federal government would be a Malay-Muslim majority government. Ku Li, however, would only agree to join the gang if he could become the new Prime Minister.

That was virtually impossible as Anwar also wanted to become Prime Minister. However, Ku Li was prepared to hold the post of Prime Minister for just one term and then hand it over to Anwar.

Ironically, Tun Abdullah Ahmad Badawi (Pak Lah) also agreed along similar lines when Tun Dr Mahathir Mohamad handed him the baton. However, once Pak Lah became Prime Minister, he liked the job too much to hand it over after just one term. So Dr Mahathir had to kick him out in the end to get him to leave.

So, what was revealed in the Wikileaks cable today is very true. September 16 could have happened but it did not because of the factors discussed earlier. The question that remains is why did Anwar announce it too early when the loose ends had yet to be tied up?

Well, Anwar needed to give the 30 Barisan MPs confidence and assure them that it was going to happen. So he made that announcement in the hope that now they would feel confident enough to jump. But Barisan MPs are not the bravest people alive.

They were prepared to support the winner. They were prepared to jump, to cross over. But they would only do it if Anwar could kick out Barisan and take over the federal government.

This was a Catch 22 situation. The 30 Barisan MPs would join Pakatan if Pakatan could form the new federal government. But Anwar needed them to cross over first before BEFORE he could kick out Barisan and form a new Pakatan federal government. Consequently, nothing happened.

Even then, if they had all agreed to jump together, Anwar still needed to make sure that most of them were from Umno rather than from the non-Malay based parties. And that was another problem. Umno people don’t come cheap. You need to pay a lot of money to buy them over. And 30 MPs from Umno would have cost Anwar hundreds of millions of Ringgit.

Where would the money come from? He would have needed to get his hands on the RM500,000 submarine commission to be able to buy the 30 Umno MPs. And there was no way Razak Baginda was going to hand over the submarine commission to Anwar to enable him to buy the 30 Umno MPs.

And that was the saga of 16 September, the take-over of the federal government that never came to pass. It was a good plan but one with too many loose ends that required too much money. And Wikileaks today confirmed this.

PR: Pakatan Desak Sidang Parlimen Tergempar

Ahmad Sarbaini Might Have Slipped To His Death - Pathologist

KUALA LUMPUR, Aug 3 (Bernama) -- Selangor Customs assistant director Ahmad Sarbaini Mohamed might have slipped to his death from a window ledge of the Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission (MACC) building in Jalan Cochrane, the Coroner's Court was told Wednesday.

This was attested by Universiti Kebangsaan Malaysia Hospital forensic pathologist Dr Shahrom Abdul Wahid at an inquest into the death.

Dr Shahrom, 54, who is the 32nd witness, said the findings were made, following a re-enactment by a stuntman, and marks found at the scene.

He said, Ahmad Sarbaini could have climbed out of the window of the pantry on level three of the building to go to a roof overlooking a badminton court.

"If one stands near the window, the roof to the left seems near, but when the victim managed to get out of the window, he found the roof was beyond his reach," he said during examination-in-chief by Deputy Public Prosecutor Mohamad Abazafree Mohd Abbas.

Dr Shahrom said hence, Ahmad Sarbaini inched his way on the window ledge to the right and tried to reach the roof, while clinging on to the window frame in vain.

The witness said the victim then changed his mind and tried to climb back to the pantry through the window, but slipped and fell to level one of the building.

He said Sarbaini took a calculated risk and did not rush, otherwise there would have been injuries and bruise marks on the abdomen as it was difficult to squeeze through the window in a hurry.

The pathologist's conclusion was based on the re-enactment by stuntman Mohd Haslin Azriff Ramley and discovery of scratch marks on the paintwork on the wall of the pantry, soles of the deceased's shoes, belt buckle, bruise marks on the victim's hands and his body position which was directly below the window.

"There were white marks on the victim's left shoe sole, but the marks were not clear as they brushed against the rear of the victim's pants when he fell. There were also scratch marks on the belt buckle, indicating that the victim tried to get back into the pantry through the window," said Dr Shahrom.

Dr Shahrom said the re-enactment by the stuntman indicated the victim was believed to have fallen backwards when his right foot slipped from the window ledge, with the fall causing serious injuries, fracturing the skull and knees.

"Apart from that, there was no sign that the victim was forced out of the window.

"Had the victim been forced out of the window, there would have been injuries on his abdomen as he would have fought the attacker and there would have been signs of a struggle at the scene," he said.

Meanwhile, Mohd Haslin, who also testified at the inquest, said it was not easy to get out of the window, as he spent between three and four minutes to do so.

The 31st witness said, despite his stunt experience, he was nervous and had cold feet when he tried to climb out of the window.

Ahmad Sarbaini, 56, of the Port Klang Customs Department, was found dead on the first floor badminton court of the MACC building on April 6.

He was reported to have gone to the office voluntarily, in connection with a corruption investigation involving 62 customs officers.

The inquest will resume before Coroner Aizatul Akmal Maharan Thursday.

SPR makin mengarut : SPR tukar status 'Mismah' dalam draf senarai pemilih

Suruhanjaya Pilihan Raya (SPR) telah mengubah status Mismah, yang namanya telah dimasukkan dalam draf senarai pendaftaran pemilih.

Ini berdasarkan kepada semakan pada sistem pengesahan dalam talian SPR pada jam 2 petang hari ini.

'Status rekod' (rujuk rajah) menyatakan permohonannya untuk mendaftar sebagai pengundi adalah 'dalam proses pengesahan daftar pemilih'.

Namanya terdapat dalam draf daftar pemilih tambahan yang telah dibuka untuk penelitian awam.

Pengerusi SPR, Tan Sri Abdul Aziz Yusof, ketika dihubungi, menjelaskan bahawa tempoh bantahan berakhir semalam.

"Mereka yang tidak menerima apa-apa bantahan akan diwartakan (sebagai pengundi). Mereka yang menerima bantahan akan tertakluk kepada proses pengesahan," katanya.

Sewaktu proses tersebut, siasatan awam akan diadakan untuk mendengar kedua-dua pihak - bakal pengundi dan pengadu.

Semalam Malaysiakini mendapati Mismah telah dikategorikan sebagai seorang penduduk tetap (PR) dalam sistem Jabatan Pendaftaran Negara (JPN).

Sistem pengesahan JPN dalam talian, yang membolehkan pengguna untuk menyemak status individu, menunjukkan Mismah adalah pemegang MyPR kad No 640704715238.

Kira-kira empat jam selepas laporan itu disiarkan semalam, status Mismah dalam sistem pengesahan dalam talian JPN, telah 'dinaik taraf' kepada warganegara.

Pengerusi SPR, Tan Sri Abdul Aziz Yusof, ketika dihubungi kemudiannya, berkata ia mungkin berpunca daripada kecuaian teknikal di pihak JPN, serta menegaskan bahawa hanya warganegara layak didaftarkan sebagai pengundi.

PSM 6 in high spirits in court

As expected, charges were levelled against the PSM 6 this morning, but what caught the attention of the packed courtroom in Butterworth was the indomitable spirit displayed by the six. 

 The PSM 6 with their lawyers - (from left) Chon Kai, lawyers Karen Lai and C V Prabhakaran, Jeyakumar, Saras, Sugu, Letchu, lawyer Agatha Foo and Babu

Far from being crushed by the latest obstacle to their work, the six and their supporters vowed to redouble their commitment to their work. They seemed genuinely awed by the level of support their cause had received from the public locally and even internationally.


Speaking outside court, Dr Jeyakumar said the authorities are shooting themselves in the foot by taking the latest course of action. “By their actions, they have given us more publicity in one month than we could ever have hoped to have achieved in four years – not that we are enjoying this ordeal,” said Kumar.

As if to prove a point, reporters mobbed the six, their cameras flashing and pens scribbling down every word uttered. Little known political activists had by now become household names.

Bail of RM8000 had to be posted for each of the six – just like the other PSM 24. Bailers had to go to a bank nearby and obtain fixed deposit certificates – which were then lodged in court.

To recap, 31 people were on the bus that was stopped on 25 July near the Sungai Dua toll plaza. The co-driver was released. The remaining 30 were detained included the bus driver and his son. In fact, out of the 30 detained, three were below 18 and were accompanying their fathers.

Once again, lawyers C V Prabhakaran, Agatha Foo, Karen Lai and other legal aid lawyers were present to assist the six.

After the morning’s proceedings, a mysterious well-wisher treated the crowd to economy rice at a nearby restaurant – just another example of how so many people have reached out to these unsung political activists in their moment of need.

The case proper for all 30 of them will be heard on 10-14 October.

As an interestig aside, the Butterworth Court office has an unusual feature: almost everything is neatly and prominently labelled, even the switches on the wall (labelled ‘Suis’) and the computer mouse (“Tetikus”). There’s also red sticky tape on the ground to indicate where the tables, chairs and even the waste-paper basket should be located.